Protecting Orchards When the Heat Is On
As heat waves become more frequent across California, fruit growers are rethinking how they protect their orchards. Jeremy Hamlin, technical sales manager with Cultiva, says extreme temperatures can cause more than sunburn.
“Heat stress can weaken trees, reduce photosynthesis, and lead to issues like sunburn, doubling, and fruit drop which can hurt marketable yield and long term productivity.”
Some growers are turning to tools that help strengthen the natural defenses of fruit and trees. Hamlin points to a product called Parka that’s gaining traction for its ability to enhance the plant’s natural cuticle…
“It boosts resilience by improving photosynthetic activity, enhancing transpiration while optimizing water use efficiency and increasing nutrient uptake and antioxidant production. It also helps increase overall tree performance by reducing ethylene production released in heat stress that can be responsible for fruit drop.
Parka is being used both on young trees and mature orchards.
“Absolutely. Parka is designed to support trees across their full life cycle, from helping new plantings mitigate shock, establish, and grow to protecting mature trees during fruit development and post-harvest. If you need to give your orchard season-long protection from heat stress and other environmental impacts, visit Cultiva.com and contact your local sales rep.”
Hamlin calls it a push towards proactivity rather than reactivity when it comes to stress management.
